An Overland Park police officer who was struck and injured during a traffic stop Sunday morning has been struck three times in less than three years.

Officer Trenton Gunter had pulled over a vehicle near 151st Street and Stearns Place when his cruiser was hit from behind. Gunter suffered a broken leg when he was pinned between his car and the car he had stopped.

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Overland Park Police Chief Frank Donchez said he knows that traffic stops can be among the most dangerous situations for his officers.

“It may surprise people to know that more officers are killed in traffic accidents than they are in shootouts,” Donchez said.

He said he’s had his own close call during a traffic stop.

“As I was going back to my car, a drunk driver came up the shoulder, and I literally dove across the front seat of my squad car and he took my driver’s (side) door off,” Donchez said.

In Kansas, the law requires drivers to move over when they see emergency vehicles on the side of the road. If they are unable to move over, the driver should at least slow down.

Donchez said distracted driving is a growing problem and the consequences can be deadly.

“You’re driving a 3,000-pound vehicle that can do a lot of damage, and I know there are distractions, and I get that people have a busy life, but when you’re behind the wheel, you have to be more attentive,” he said.

Gunter was expected to be released Monday from a hospital.

The Kansas Highway Patrol is investigating the crash and will determine whether any charges will be filed against the 18-year-old driver who hit Gunter’s cruiser.